Chapter Twelve

 

 

 

After they reached her family’s cabin, her mom fussed over Jerrica as she got her and Calan to sit at the table while she made some breakfast for them. Her dad sat with them as well. Once their food was served and her mom was seated too, her father started the conversation.

“All right. What’s this about you being Calan’s mate, Jerrica?”

Jerrica swallowed her mouthful of scrambled eggs before she answered. “Well, the spirits who turned Calan came to him in a dream vision and told him I was.”

“A dream vision? And spirits were the ones who turned Calan into the Werewolf Defender?”

“Yes.”

Calan broke into the conversation. “Maybe it’d be better if I started from the beginning about how I became what I am today. It’ll probably help you understand.” He told the same story he’d told Jerrica, about finding the cave while on vacation with his family, the chanting, the spirits and how he’d slept for twenty years.

Her mom gave Calan as sympathetic look. “Having to ‘see’ your family being attacked by zombies then them become the undead while you were unable to do anything to help must have been horrible.”

“It was, but with every undead I take out, I think it’s one less family that has to suffer through a loss like that.”

“So the spirits recently came to you again?” her dad asked.

Calan nodded. “Yes.” He explained the dream vision he’d had, what the spirits had said during it and what he’d be able to do to Jerrica.

Her father looked at her. “Is that what you want? Do you want Calan to turn you into an immortal werewolf like him?”

“Yes.” Jerrica met each of her parents’ gazes. “I love Calan, and he loves me. There will never be anyone else for me but him. I want to have the same lifespan.”

“So once he does turn you, that means you’ll leave the settlement with him,” her mom said sadly. “We might not see you ever again.”

“It’s not going to happen right away, Mom. Calan has already decided we’ll stay here for a year, so at the end of it, we can get married.”

“And turning you? Would you wait that long as well?”

Jerrica glanced at Calan before she turned her gaze back on her mom. “I doubt I will. I’m not yet ready to take that step, but I know it’ll be soon. I’ll be able to hunt alongside Calan. Between the two of us, we’ll take out more zombies and the settlement will be safer for it. As our new leader, Dad, you shouldn’t have a problem with that.”

He smiled. “I don’t. I still find it hard to believe I’m the leader now.”

Her mom reached over and placed her hand on her dad’s. “Well, you are, and I think we’re all much better off for it.”

The cabin’s door opened and Hunter rushed inside. He was out of breath as if he’d been running. “Baby coming. I already went to the midwife’s. She’s on her way. And congrats, Dad,” he said in between pants.

Her mother shot to her feet. “Oh my goodness. I’ll go to your cabin with you. I promised Faith I’d be there when the time came for the baby to arrive. Did you tell her mom?”

Hunter nodded. “Yes. I went to her family’s cabin first before the midwife’s. Her mother is probably already with Faith.”

“Let’s go then. Geoff, you can come with us. Jerrica and Calan, you stay here and finish eating, then you can meet with us at Hunter’s cabin.”

Her mom ushered her father and brother outside then Jerrica and Calan were alone.

“This will be a day my family won’t forget,” Jerrica said with a laugh. “First my dad becomes leader of the settlement, and my niece or nephew will be born.”

“Your mom really knows how to take charge, doesn’t she?”

Jerrica laughed again. “Yes. The way she acts most of the time, you’d never know it, but when in a crisis or something like this happens, she knows what to do.”

After Calan and Jerrica finished eating, she went up to her loft bedroom to change her clothes. Dressed again, she’d just picked up her brush to run through her hair when his head appeared at the top of the ladder.

“Nice bedroom,” he said, as he came up the rest of the way.

“Thanks.” Jerrica nodded toward the two single beds. “I used to have to share it with Hunter.”

“Here… let me.” Calan came to stand behind her and took her hairbrush. “I love your hair.” He brushed it with long strokes.

“You do realize you might be doing this for a while. I like having someone brush my hair.”

Calan chuckled. “I don’t mind. Since it’s still early, and I doubt Faith’s baby will come that quickly, how about we lie down and take a nap? You said you didn’t sleep very well last night.”

Jerrica turned her head and looked at her bed before she focused back on Calan’s reflection in the mirror. “I could use a nap, but there’s no way my bed will fit you and I while you’re in your wolf form.”

“I’m not shifting first. I’ll stay in this form, and we can lie down together. And I promise it’ll just be sleeping and nothing else.”

Now that the drama was over, tiredness tugged at Jerrica. She’d really had an uncomfortable sleep. No matter where she’d lay, there had always seemed to be a rock digging into her. The only part of sleeping in the cave that’d been good was having her head pillowed on Calan while he’d been a wolf. She liked the closeness.

“Okay, I trust you. And given that you’re my mate and that we plan to get married, I doubt my parents will mind if they suddenly come home and catch us together up here.”

“Good. Both of us could use the extra sleep.”

Calan put her brush on her dresser, then took her hand and led her to stand between the two single beds. Jerrica climbed onto the one that was hers, then he did the same and stretched out beside her on his back. She turned onto her side and snuggled closer with her head on his chest. One of his arms came around her.

Jerrica closed her eyes and tried to go to sleep but found it eluded her. She was all too aware of Calan lying beside her, of being in his embrace. It wasn’t like it’d been when they’d slept in the cave close together, and he’d been a wolf.

She shifted her head so she could look him in the face and found he intently watched her. He tugged her higher until their mouths were even, then took her lips in a kiss. Jerrica lifted a hand to sink it into Calan’s hair at the back of his head and returned it.

With a groan, Calan rolled Jerrica to her back and half lay on top her as the kiss deepened. She soon got caught up in the feelings and emotions surging through her and forgot about everything else but him.

He left her mouth and kissed a path down the column of her throat. A shiver went through her as his teeth lightly grazed her skin. At where her neck and shoulder met, he gently nipped her, causing her to shiver again.

Between one second and the next, Jerrica suddenly found her arms full of wolf. Calan had shifted that quickly. His teeth nipped her once more, but this time they held another meaning.

Jerrica buried her hands in his fur at his neck to hold him still, and asked, “Calan?”

Saying his name had Calan jerking away and jumping off the bed. Jerrica sat up and looked at him.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I got too caught up in the kiss. I shouldn’t have let it get that far.”

“It’s okay. Shift back, and we’ll sleep. No more kissing.”

“We can sleep, but I think it’s best if I stay like this and on the floor. You’re too tempting when I’m in human form.”

“You don’t have to sleep on the floor. You can at least take the other bed, even if you stay as a wolf.”

“I’d rather be closer to you, so I’ll lie next to you here.”

Calan went down on his belly and put his head on his outstretched front paws. Jerrica lay down and rolled to her stomach. She hung her arm over the side of the bed and sank her hand into the fur on his back. She had to admit that he wasn’t the only one who’d gotten caught up in the kiss. She’d wanted to see where it would have lead. And it if it had lasted much longer, she might not have stopped him from biting her while he was in his wolf form. Maybe she was more ready to be turned than she’d thought.

 

* * * *

 

Jerrica sucked in a sharp breath and came awake. She lifted her head and looked around the room. The sun shone brightly through the window, which meant it was late morning. She pushed herself up into a sitting position, then stretched. She remembered Calan and turned her gaze to the floor. He wasn’t there.

She got up and headed down the ladder to the main floor of the cabin. Calan was there, standing in front of the wooden basin, drinking a glass of water. Jerrica crossed the room to stand at his side. She took out a clean glass from the cupboard for herself.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” she asked, as she used the hand pump to bring the water from the well.

Calan finished drinking then place his glass in the basin. “You were in a pretty deep sleep. I figured you needed it, so I came down here. I was thirsty, anyway.”

Jerrica drank her water. “I guess we should head over to Hunter’s and see what’s happening over there.”

“All right.”

After she placed her glass next to Calan’s, the two of them left the cabin and made the short walk across her family’s land to Hunter’s place. Once she and Calan arrived, Jerrica saw her dad sat alone on the porch. He looked up when they stepped into the yard.

“You two finally made it,” he said as he stood.

“After we finished eating, we took a nap,” Jerrica said. “I didn’t sleep very well last night.”

Her dad nodded. “I can understand that. And you do look more rested than you did earlier.”

“No baby yet?”

“Nope, but your mom stepped out of the cabin about ten minutes ago to tell me it wouldn’t be very long now.”

“So you’ve been just sitting out here by yourself?”

Her father smiled. “Well, not entirely. People have been coming and going. They know Faith has gone into labor, but they mostly wanted to let me know they’re happy I’m the leader. A few have already brought up the subject of a couple things inside the settlement that need to be handled by me. One was kind of pressing—inspecting the trees that have grown close to the walls’ perimeters.” He looked at Calan. “Since you’ll be staying a while, would you mind watching over the workers when they handle that job?”

Calan nodded. “I can do that. I’ve patrolled around the walls of the entire settlement and I’ve noticed there are quite a few trees that are too close and tall, especially at the back. They shouldn’t have been allowed to grow.”

“Apparently John was told by the people who have land close to the back walls several times over the last couple years about that problem. He told them he’d look into it, but nothing was ever done, which was irresponsible.”

“Very,” Calan said. “Zombies aren’t smart, but all it’d take is one to figure out it can climb a tree to get over the walls and any others nearby watching will do the same thing.”

“That’s what I thought. Tomorrow, after the field workers are done for the day, would you mind going out with some of the men I assign to cut down the trees? Of course, it won’t be done in one shot. It could take a week or more, depending on how many trees have to be removed.”

“I’m fine with that. It has to be done.”

“Yes. And once it is, I’m going to set up a regular schedule for the warmer months to have any new seedlings pulled out. That’s a lot easier than cutting down a full-sized tree.”

The sound of a baby crying reached Jerrica’s ears, coming from the cabin. She smiled. “The newest member of our family has arrived.”

Hunter walked through the cabin’s door, then stepped off the porch to join them. He wore the biggest smile Jerrica had ever seen on his face. “It’s a boy,” he said.

“What’s his name?” Jerrica asked.

“Seth.”

“And Faith? How is she?”

“Fine. She did great. The midwife said that for a first baby, Faith had an easy time of it.”

Her mom opened the door and called their names. “Come inside and see the baby.”

Hunter and her dad went first. As Jerrica and Calan followed behind, she said, “Since you’re my mate and will be my husband, I guess you’re an uncle. You have a family again.”

Calan gave her a surprised look, then smiled. “You’re right. I didn’t think about it.” He pulled Jerrica to a stop just in front of the porch steps and tugged her into his arms. “I missed being part of one. Thanks to you, that’s no longer the case.” He kissed her lightly.

“Knock it off, you two,” Hunter called from the open doorway. “Get in here and meet your nephew.”

Jerrica took Calan’s hand and walked with him up the steps, then inside the cabin. As of today, there were two new family members instead of one. Calan and the baby. As she’d told Calan, she doubted this would be a day any of them would ever forget.

 

* * * *

 

It was two days after Jerrica’s father had stepped into his new role as leader of the settlement. Calan noticed everyone who lived there seemed happier. Geoff had taken to the job like a duck to water. As for John and his family, they were rarely seen. They kept to their cabin. Calan still kept an eye on the former leader, just in case he tried to do something in retaliation. He was the type of man who would, especially since John had inherited his former position. Not that he felt sorry for John. The man had gotten what he deserved.

Last evening Calan had gone out with the workers that Geoff had assigned to cut down the trees around the walls. It was going to be a big job. There were far more than he’d first assumed. They’d been left for decades. Some even had thick branches that overhung the top of the walls. Getting rid of those had been the job they’d taken on right away. Cutting the trees down would start later that day.

At that moment, he watched over the workers in the fields. Jerrica was beside him with her ever-present bow and quiver on her back. The work day was almost over, which Calan was thankful for. For almost a week, the temperature had soared, bringing with it high humidity. The only thing that would break it would be rain, but since the sky was cloudless, he doubted that would happen any time soon. The workers spent the majority of the day watering huge fields to keep the crops from drying out.

As if she knew what he was thinking, Jerrica waved a hand in front of her face. “I don’t think I can take too much more of this heat. I don’t know how you can do it wearing fur.”

“I’m used to it. Where I originally come from, we never get winter, so it’s like summer all the time,” Calan replied.

“I don’t know how I’d like that. The zombies are slower moving once the snow flies. If it were summer all year round, there wouldn’t be much of a break from them.”

“People have learned to work around that. Some feel the warmer climate is crucial to their survival.”

“Yeah, winter can be hard on a settlement, especially if the crops don’t do well during the growing season. I’ve been lucky that in my lifetime ours has always had more than enough when harvest time comes in the fall. My grandparents told me stories of how when their parents first made their new life here, it’d been a hard winter on all the settlers. This way of living had been new to them. Most hadn’t ever done without electricity and running water.”

“I bet. Society at the time when the first zombies appeared was very tech-based. We had our Internet, cell phones, tablets, laptops… You name it. Just about everything had a computer in it, even the cars. It was a big cultural shock for a lot of people to basically take a step backward in time.”

“I sometimes forget how old you actually are,” Jerrica said with a smile. “You’re a walking, breathing history book. You remember things that will eventually be lost when the last people who know about them die.”

Calan turned his head and looked at Jerrica. “I’ll always remember. I won’t ever let myself forget. Maybe one day humans will be able to get back all that lost knowledge.”

Jerrica turned her gaze on the fields. “Finally. Mathias is calling it quits for today.” She met Calan’s gaze. “Are you going out with the others to cut down trees right away?”

“Yeah, right after I eat something. We have to get as much work done as we can while it’s still light out. I can see, but the workers can’t. Plus, them being out there once darkness comes will be too much of a risk.”

“Are you hunting after that?”

Calan leaned against Jerrica’s shoulder. “No. I figured I’d spend some time with you then. Even though we’re together all day here, we can’t relax, since we have to be constantly on guard.”

Jerrica reached up and scratched behind his ear. “I’d like that. Come on. Let’s catch up with the others. My mom said she’d have dinner ready as soon as we arrive at the cabin, so you can eat before you go out again.”

Calan had been accepted into Jerrica’s family as if he’d always been a part of it. In some ways, it made him miss his own more than he had in a very long time. But he was more than happy to take a place in Jerrica’s, especially since she was in it.

The need to bite and turn her had grown over the last couple of days since she’d agreed to become his mate and all that went with it. The wait for her to feel ready to take that next step in their relationship was killing him, but he held to his promise not to force her into it before she was.

After they arrived at the cabin, Calan shifted to human form and quickly ate the dinner Jerrica’s mom had made. Then he returned to the gates to meet with the group of men who’d been assigned the task of thinning out the forest close to the walls. Since there were more trees at the back, yesterday they’d decided to start cutting there.

Back in wolf form, Calan led the way through the woods, keeping a watchful eye out for zombies. He sniffed the air every once in a while, but he didn’t detect the scent of the undead.

The men chose their first tree and set to work chopping it down with their axes. It was hard work and time-consuming. It made Calan think that if only they had a gas chainsaw, it’d go so much quicker.

After the first one came down, Calan realized it’d take more than a week to clear the trees they wanted to at the rate they were going. They left the tree where it landed and moved on to the next. Once they had enough cleared to get a horse and wagon through, the wood would be brought into the settlement and turned into lumber. It wouldn’t go to waste.

The men had been at it for a few hours and were working on the last tree they could fell before it became dark. It was one that was taller than the top of the walls. Its trunk was thick and was probably at least fifty years old. Two of the six-man crew attacked it with their axes, one taking a strike right after the other.

That was when an arrow came sailing over the walls with something attached to it. The arrow embedded itself into the ground close to them. The bundle tied to the shaft broke apart at contact, spraying a red liquid. A second then a third followed in quick session, carrying the same substance.

The smell of the liquid hit Calan’s nose, making him growl. It was blood. Pig’s blood, which had enough human blood mixed in with it to lure zombies to this spot in a matter of minutes. The undead could smell the blood a quarter mile away and would quickly zone in on it. The men were sitting ducks.

Calan threw back his head and howled. Once he had all six of their attentions, he said, “You have to get behind the walls. Now. That’s pig’s blood mixed with human blood. Zombies are going to be headed this way, drawn by it. Run.”

The six men dropped whatever they held and took off running, flanking the walls. At the sound of the zombies’ howls, Calan stood his ground and prepared to take the first of them out while the humans headed for safety.